BUFFALO, NY – Congressman Brian Higgins (NY-27) announced Congress secured $195,000 for MercyHospital in the City of Buffalo.The funding, authorized in the Omnibus Appropriations bill approved this week, will be used toward a new emergency department at the hospital.

“MercyHospital provides emergency services to more patients than any other hospital in Western New York and provides outstanding care to all it serves,” said Congressman Higgins.“These federal funds will play a role in a larger effort to provide emergency patients with the best and newest equipment and technology available.”

With groundbreaking for the new facility planned for 2008, the new emergency department will triple the size of the current unit.Total cost of the project is expected to exceed $30 million.The approved federal funding, also supported by Senators Clinton and Schumer, will be used toward the purchase of imaging technologies which will enable health care providers to deliver enhanced and more cost-effective health care.

The new emergency department is expected to literally and figuratively change the face of MercyHospital. “We want to thank Congressman Higgins for securing the funding to help equip this state-of-the-art facility, which will enable us to provide more high-quality services for more people,” said C.J. Urlaub, President & CEO of MercyHospital. “We hope to receive final approval from the State Health Department in the coming months so we can move ahead with this much-needed project for our community.”

Serving Buffalo and Southern Erie County, MercyHospital is a Center of Excellence for Stroke and Cardiac Care. Part of the Catholic Health System (CHS), the hospital is estimated to have an annual regional economic impact of nearly $500 million.It is a cornerstone for the community’s future growth and vitality.

“Having access to high quality, comprehensive emergency care is critical as we begin to reshape the healthcare delivery system in Western New York,” said Joe McDonald, CHS President & CEO. “The Catholic Health System is committed to preserving and strengthening emergency services throughout the region to maintain access to this often life-saving care and better meet the needs of the sick and injured in our community.”

“On behalf of the thousands of patients we treat each year, as well as the physicians and staff who work in the Emergency Department and who are eagerly awaiting the new building, we are very grateful to Congressman Higgins for his confident support of this project,” said Dr. Richard Elman, chair of Emergency Services at Mercy.